Investments in stock funds fell in July

BOSTON -- Individual investments in U.S. equity mutual funds tumbled in July as the stock market endured one of its worst slumps since 1990 and investors shifted money to low-risk money market funds.

Fidelity Investments, the nation's No. 1 fund group, said about $500 million was withdrawn from its domestic stock funds this month and $2 billion was added to money market funds.

Fidelity's report of net outflows follows an industry report by AMG Data Services that said more than $4 billion was yanked from stock funds in the week ended July 17. It was the biggest one-week withdrawal since at least January 1992.

The pace of stock fund inflows first showed signs of slowing in June. About $14.48 billion was added to equity funds last month, down 42 percent from $25.11 billion in May, the Investment Company Institute said last week.